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Doctors use the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test to check your prostate’s health. The PSA test is best known as a prostate cancer test. But high PSA levels can point to other prostate problems. These include infections and an enlarged prostate.
What do high PSA levels mean?
The PSA test is a blood test. It checks the levels of prostate-specific antigen, a chemical made by your prostate. If you have high PSA levels, your doctor will want to be sure you don’t have prostate cancer. He or she might order a biopsy to check for cancer cells. This involves surgery to remove a small piece of prostate tissue.
Many men with high PSA levels don’t have cancer.
Enlarged prostate and PSA levels
Experts have seen a link between prostate size and PSA levels. The larger the prostate, the higher the PSA level. If you have an enlarged prostate and your PSA levels are rising, your prostate may be growing.
PSA tests also show which men with an enlarged prostate are most likely to have problems:
- Men with higher PSA levels are more likely to have symptoms that get worse.
- They’re at higher risk of having a blocked bladder, so they can’t urinate.
- They’re more likely to need prostate surgery some day.
Because of these higher risks, your doctor may suggest treatment if your PSA levels are 1.5 or higher.
Some medicines that treat an enlarged prostate can lower PSA levels. The PSA test can still test for cancer when you’re on these medicines. But your doctor will need to read the results in a different way.
After a PSA test, talk with your doctor. Write down your PSA number. Before you leave the office, make sure you know what your PSA levels mean.
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